Evening Wear and Envy
by BrightPinkJackets
Summary: M'gann is going out. Artemis is just a tad jealous. Not femslash, hint of SuperMartian


Note: This was done on two prompts from the Crayola Challenge. The color 'white' and the emotion 'envy'.

Disclaimer: Young Justice, the characters, and related items are owned by DC COMICS/Entertainment and those people who make this show possible. No copyright infringement intended of course.

XXXXXX

Artemis had never been surrounded by so much… so much pink. Never in her fifteen years of life had she been. In fact, she never owned anything pink. The closest thing was a light red jumper she had when she was five. And even if Artemis had liked the color, she would never have this much. Not an inch. It was a pride thing. Not her own though. Her dad's.

The walls were the shade of bubblegum. The bed was covered in white and magenta blankets and pillows. On the ivory-colored side table, there was a lamp covered in pink polka dots. Next to it, a matching clock. Shelves were filled from side to side with books, mostly on the art of cooking. A pinkish flower dipped in a small glass of water sat on top of that. There was a roseate rug in the middle of the room; this, she had to admit, contrasted quite well with the wooden floor. But then there was that strong, flowery perfume smell in the air, adding to color-induced nausea.

It was so pink. So girly. So… M'gann.

The green-skinned girl twirled and gave her a small smile. Artemis hoped there was a good reason why she was here. While she didn't hate M'gann, she could imagine a million things more fun than exchanging boring girl talk.

Artemis patiently waited for the girl to speak. But every time it seemed as if M'gann were about to speak, nothing came out. Green fingers twirled in her auburn hair while her cheeks flushed. Finally the impulsive archer decided to break the ice herself. Spending hours waiting for M'gann to speak wasn't an ideal pastime.

"What is it?"

She noticed there was a quiet sigh of relief before M'gann answered:

"I need to talk to you."

Crossing her arms, Artemis leaned back a bit. "Okay. What is it?"

Yet again the green girl became hesitant. She stared down at the floor, fiddling with her fingers, as if that would get the words out faster. Artemis was almost afraid of what subject could be. Had she found out about her family and past? Why had she let her in her mind so easily? Had she learned about…

"I kind of need help about which outfit I should wear…" M'gann suddenly said.

It was Artemis's turn to heave a sigh. She was safe. The subject wasn't too… boring, she guessed. At least it wasn't another discussion about how Artemis should totally go for Wally… ugh.

Amidst the relief, a question was raised in Artemis's mind. Why did M'gann need help with what to wear? Since when? Usually it was her who Artemis gave that advice. Usually it was her who was fully confident with what she wore, even if it was something you'd see in the seventies. Plus, Artemis wasn't known for her fashion tastes. That's what magazines were for.

"For what?" Artemis asked curiously.

Another long pause before she whispered, "It's for a date…"

She placed her hands behind her and rocked back and forward. Her eyes looked up to her teammate and the next bit she said a bit louder.

"…With Superboy."

As soon as M'gann uttered the sentence, Artemis felt her eyes go wide and mouth take the shape of an O. Upon realizing that M'gann could see her shocked expression (it wasn't _that_ shocked), she snapped it back into composure. Forcing a smile, she replied through a cringe, "That's… uh.. nice."

Slowly that fake smile crumbled into a bewildered half-frown as she thought: _Why her? What did Superboy see in her? What did she have that I don't? _

In the back of her mind, she was expecting this. They spent way more time together (they lived together after all), and M'gann wasn't exactly subtle about her own crush (no more than Artemis of course). But today she wasn't ready to hear it. It was supposed to be a typical day. School, training, meals, bedtime. Helping M'gann out with her date wasn't something regular and Artemis hoped it wouldn't become that way.

Artemis wasn't the type to get dates right off the bat. It took smooth talking and serious sashay. A little flirtatious panache. Unfortunately that was what Wally did as well. And naturally it didn't work at all.

Artemis Crock had never been on a date before.

It wasn't like she had the time. Even before she was on the team, she was busy staying on top of her schoolwork and dealing with _family issues_. She was lucky if she got to see her friends outside of school. And what very few friends she had at school.

When she did joined the team, she had seen him. A muscular, dark-haired guy with a nice t-shirt. He was strong, capable of breaking entire tanks apart with his bare hands. It certainly would be nice to be in those arms… She could only imagine how warm they were. Hopefully not as cold and icy as his lovely eyes. Temperate… passionate…

"…The pink one or the blue one?" That was M'gann. The blonde was pulled from her thoughts and watched the Martian's clothes morph from a flowing pink gown to a shiny blue cheongsam.

They both looked fine, even though they weren't the type of things Artemis would wear herself. Maybe something darker… something without a skirt. She shivered at the thought of the school uniform she was expected to wear now.

"They're both fine," she responded, resting her head in a hand. "Which one do you like better?"

Stupid! Artemis berated herself for saying that. The whole point of this discussion was for Artemis to decide what outfit she liked best. Unfortunately she wasn't in the mood for this.

She was more in the mood for something a little… rotten. A little childish too.

M'gann wasn't a bad person or anything. It just seemed a little unfair. Had she lived here too, she would have an equal chance of getting to know Superboy a bit more too. All she knew about the guy was that his name is Superboy, he has good abs, and he has some serious anger issues.

She knew more about Wally and she didn't even like him!

It wouldn't be the worst thing she had ever done. Compare all the extremely horrible things she had done to this little bit of child's play, it would be completely innocent.

"How about something beige," Artemis suggested, feigning nonchalance to keep the growing giggles from erupting. She would say green, but since they were going out into town…

With a nod, M'gann's blue dress transformed into a sand-colored strapless. She looked at Artemis for further adjustments. Artemis supposed it was close enough.

It looked fine now, even though it was not the ideal color to go with bright green. But once M'gann had to change her skin color, she would look just terrible. And funny at the same time. Everyone, even the fashion-sheltered Artemis, knew that you didn't wear something that was the exact same color of your skin.

The bubbling laughter in her chest only grew when M'gann began to actually admire her reflection in the mirror. That shyness that nearly kept her from asking Artemis for help had disappeared without a trace. She was completely confident in winning Superboy's heart tonight.

XXXXX

She could feel happiness. Not her own however. Her own glee that was growing along with her anticipation of tonight. It had been her dream to actually do something with Superboy. Just the two of them. Alone. Just like in the TV show Hello Megan.

But this _other_ happiness was tinged with a little bitterness and malevolence. There was also anticipation. The type one had when they were about to blow a building up. And the most disturbing part was that it was coming from Artemis.

She stared down at her dress and then at the mirror. The color seemed quite bland. She kind of hoped for something more bright and colorful. Artemis seemed to approve though.

M'gann glanced back at Artemis who immediately gave her a grin and two thumbs' up. Maybe Superboy would like it too.

But still… something didn't seem right. Artemis's mysterious feelings gently brushing against her mind. Plus, she gazed at her lime-colored hand, the color wouldn't exactly go with…

"I think you look good," Artemis commented, getting up from the bed.. Back in the mirror, she watched as her green skin became a pinkish beige. She frowned.

Yet again she felt her teammate's emotions. This time it was worry. But the others were still there. Did Artemis also see how she looked? Did she plan this?

"Very…" the human girl seemed to be searching for a word. M'gann hoped they wouldn't be too critical or insulting. "…Cute."

Maybe she was just feeling things. Maybe she herself was worried about this date. It was her first time after all.

"Wait…" she said back to Artemis before she stepped out of her room. She trembled a bit, unsure of her question. M'gann just couldn't shake the hazy feeling that something was wrong.

"Artemis, do you think Superboy will like this?"

"I'm sure he will," she sent back over her shoulder. But right before the blonde could leave, M'gann suddenly heard a single thought.

_Like hell. _

She disliked hearing others' thoughts. Most of the time they were fine and harmless. But this time it stung a bit. She had heard the phrase before in movies. It was often used for distaste. Was Artemis trying imply that Superboy wouldn't like her dress? Was she trying to…

"Wait," she said again. Now she was really afraid. Afraid of the answer.

The archer turned around with a huff, crossing her arms. "What?"

"Are you…" she choked up a bit before quickly saying in one breath. "Areyoutryingtosabotagemydate?"

Brown eyes widened and Artemis grimaced, shrugging. "No. You look fine. Really."

Even without looking into her mind, she knew that was a lie.

This was also like an episode of Hello Megan. One girl was trying to sabotage Megan's date because she… she liked the boy Megan was going out with. Did Artemis also like Superboy? She remembered what Artemis said… err… thought of him that first night. She remembered the many suggestions that M'gann should go out with Kaldur.

Frowning, M'gann's brown dress and white skin changed back to her usual costume and skin. She stepped toward the girl who seemed to be hugging herself. "Are you?"

"Well…"

"You are, aren't you?" M'gann had trusted her. She had trusted her for help, and now that connection had shattered. What would she do now? She could pick her own outfit of course, but what would their relationship be like from now on? They both liked Superboy. M'gann almost felt guilty about being with him tonight.

In that episode, the two girls hated each other from then on. They were enemies, always getting into fights, and going after that boy. M'gann didn't want this. It would be bad for the team and them both.

XXXXX

Artemis hated this caught-in-the-cookie-jar feeling. She had been so sure the girl would take her advice and actually go out in that garb.

As the old saying goes, pride comes before fall. And now she was taking the fall. It kind of stung too.

She didn't hate M'gann. She just liked Superboy. What she would do to have a little one on one with him.

A snarky comment or arrow wouldn't get her out of this, considering the fact that the other in the room was a powerful Martian.

"It's just…" she began. "It's just… I… uh…" She couldn't think or talk straight! Or at least sugarcoat the answer enough so that M'gann wasn't too mad. How was she supposed to tell her that she was… jealous. A little green with envy.

M'gann opened her mouth to speak. "I get that you like him too. But we're not together-together. You don't need to be jealous or anything….

"I just don't want this to ruin our friendship…"

Suddenly Artemis froze. It wasn't a big moment or anything, but did M'gann just call her a friend? They didn't do much together or have many similarities, other than talk a bit and be in missions together. Why would M'gann say they were friends?

"Besides…" There was a warm smile as she touched Artemis's shoulder. "I think Wally likes you."

Suddenly it was getting hot. Artemis wanted to squirm out of her gentle grip and disappear. But instead she turned away and dryly replied, "Whatever." She knew what she was doing.

"Come on," M'gann insisted, throwing her hands in the air. "You guys looked cute in the desert."

"Yeah, covered in sand and sweat," Artemis retorted, slightly annoyed. "Amnesia, remember?"

"He still could." Artemis hoped that wasn't true. While she would like to go out on a date one day, it wouldn't be with him. Never that redheaded jerk.

She then noticed M'gann twitching a bit at the polka dot clock. It was almost six.

"Well…I guess I better get ready now."

Artemis was about to take her queue to go. But before the door closed, she caught sight of her… friend frantically changing into different outfits of variety and color. It was pathetic… to see someone this anxious about something as trivial as fashion.

She heaved a sigh and went back in, hoping somehow M'gann would forget her little trick. She'd call this her good deed for the day.

"How about white?" She said, causing the Martian to jump a bit. She turned around and cocked a brow. M'gann was still didn't know if this was another trick.

"What?"

"White. I think it would look really pretty on you," Artemis told her. M'gann seemed hesitant, but she began to change into a white summer frock and matching sandals. A white flower pinned on her chest. Her skin also took on whiter shade.

She twirled in front of the mirror and then looked back at Artemis. The look that could be suspicious one.

But then M'gann said (was that… a little appreciation Artemis detected?), "I guess I'll have to take your word for it. I really can't decide."

XXXX

She met him outside. He wasn't wearing anything too fancy. The usual stuff. He brushed his hair though. He almost didn't recognize her when she first came out (he was still getting used to her changing her skin color and all) but eventually he caught on.

Up and down he looked, and then said in his usual gruff fashion (there was a smile), "You look nice."

M'gann was happy for that. If he liked it, it was good enough. And even if Artemis had been trying to 'ruin the dress' again, she liked the color herself. Holding his hand, she pushed all thoughts of the archer and the previous dress aside.

It was going to be just the two of them tonight.

XXXXX

On her way to the teleporters, Artemis heaved a long sigh. In hindsight, she was being immature, trying to ruin M'gann's outfit. It didn't feel fair though. Well, at least there were other ways.

There were also other fish in the sea, as M'gann had implied, even if one of those fish were Wally (she didn't like him at all). Fixating herself on one guy wasn't the life she wanted. She had a lot more things to worry about.

But she still wouldn't mind a little one on one with Superboy.

XXXXX

Author's Note: Yay, I finally got this done! My first fanfiction for Young Justice! Probably not the greatest fanfic ever, but I'm happy. I'll probably be editing this from time to time (wouldn't effect the general story of course), but if anyone sees an spelling/grammar error, you can tell me through the comments/review sections.


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